Star-Ledger fileU.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, seen in a 2009 photo, has come under scrutiny for campaign fund spending in the past.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, under fire for using campaign funds to pay for a lavish family trip to Scotland and other unusual expenses, is now facing a probe by the House ethics committee.

The House Committee on Ethics says it is considering an investigation into the Camden County Democrat after the Office of Congressional Ethics referred a complaint in April.

The committee did not disclose the complaint’s details but Camden County Republican Chairman Tom Booth wrote the panel in November to ask it to investigate Andrews after a Star-Ledger report detailed the congressman’s campaign spending habits, including a $7,725 stay at a five-star hotel with his family in Scotland for the wedding of a donor whose name he won’t disclose and $10,000 for a high school graduation party for his daughter.

The newspaper also reported Andrews spent thousands in campaign funds on donations to theaters that cast his other daughter in their plays and fundraising trips to California that coincided with opportunities for her show business career.

Andrews argues that all of the expenses were legitimate because they were related to his holding and running for office, but after the Star-Ledger report he reimbursed his campaign account more than $13,000 for the Scotland trip expenses and then donated the money to charity.

Campaign finance reports also show that Andrews (D-1st District) used his leadership PAC to pay more than $16,000 for airfare for the Scotland trip, which he also later reimbursed.

In a statement, Andrews said he’s "always followed every rule and standard’ and called the allegations partisan.

"These accusations are totally and categorically false. Such attacks on anyone’s children and families, who are not public figures, should have no place in our political discourse," Andrews said. "None of these accusations involve the use of taxpayer or government money. Our campaign’s public disclosures show that every dollar of our campaign funds was properly spent and fully disclosed."

The 22-year incumbent also faces a complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a good government watchdog group. Andrews’ campaign reports shows he has paid more than $100,000 to the law firm of Stanley Brand, who is known for representing members of congress who face ethics charges.

Melanie Sloan, CREW’s executive director, said the fact that the Office of Congressional Ethics forwarded the complaint to the committee means they found "substantial reason to believe that Andrews committed some violations," though the office does not rule on the allegations. The committee said it would announce its action by Aug. 31.

"It’s clear he’s under a serious investigation. There’s no question he did something wrong," said Sloan, who scoffed at Andrews’ claim that Republicans were engaging in a partisan attack against his children.

"It’s not about his children, it’s about him improperly diverting campaign money to support his children," she said. "It’s really about Andrews. I’m sure the Republican Party has its own partisan agenda, but Andrews left the door wide open."

Booth, who filed the complaint, said he didn’t bring Andrews’ children into it.

"By the way, I didn’t make any accusations against him. I filed a letter with the House Ethics Committee asking them to investigate. And it was based off (The Star-Ledger’s) story," he said. "He’s got it all jumbled up. He did this. Nobody else."

Based on recent history, the odds of the committee sanctioning Andrews are slim. The Capitol Hill newspaper The Hill says that since its creation in 2008, the Office of Congressional Ethics has forwarded 32 known cases to the committee, which formally investigated eight. Four were dropped, one resulted in sanctions and three probes are ongoing.